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The legislators urged Mercyhealth to “reconsider your position soon,” anticipating continuation of negotiations on Friday, July 11.

The 69���� reached out the Mercyhealth on Thursday seeking a response to the letter from legislators. Mercyhealth did not immediately respond to the newspaper.

The union workers at the Mercyhealth East Clinic have been on strike since July 2 in the ongoing labor dispute.

State Reps. Brienne Brown of the 43rd Assembly District, Clinton Anderson of the 45th Assembly District, Ann Roe of the 44th Assembly District, and Randy Udell of the 47th Assembly District, along with State Sen. Mark Spreitzer of the 15th Senate District, are among those who signed the letter, dated Thursday, July 10.

Their letter, addressed to Mercyhealth Vice President Jeni Hallatt, urged Mercyhealth to consider raising workers’ wages to cover rising living costs and insurance premiums, and urged Mercyhealth to address security and safety concerns that workers have raised as part of the labor negotiations.

Legislators particularly referenced a letter sent to striking workers this past week, obtained by The 69����, in which Hallatt said participating workers risk losing their jobs if the strike continues.

“While on strike, striking employees/partners will not receive pay and are not entitled to unemployment benefits under Wisconsin law. Second, in certain circumstances, the benefits (including healthcare) of striking employees/partners may be discontinued. Third, striking employees/partners can be replaced, in some cases permanently,” the letter said.

Hallatt also suggested in her letter that progress toward a resolution has been made.

“Consistent with the parties’ long history and productive relationship, the parties have made much progress and have worked together to resolve difficult issues concerning your employment. In fact, so much progress has been made that only two significant issues remain: wages and healthcare,” Hallatt’s letter said.

“We were disappointed to see the letter you wrote threatening the jobs and benefits of those striking,” the legislators wrote in their letter Thursday to Mercyhealth. “Moreover, the letter encouraged members to resign from their union and cross the picket line.”

The lawmakers characterized Mercyhealth’s approach as “blatantly anti-worker” and falling “short of the mission, vision, and values Mercyhealth promotes.” They emphasized that “union-busting tactics have no place in Wisconsin.”

Spreitzer, in an interview with The 69���� on Thursday, said he is “a strong supporter of union rights (and) collective bargaining rights for both public and private employees,” and expressed concern that Hallatt’s letter to workers threatened “the pay, the healthcare benefits and even permanent loss of jobs of the striking workers. To me that seems like an incredible escalation and really inappropriate for a nonprofit hospital in our community.”

Brown, in an interview with The 69���� on Thursday, similarly said it was “really important,” for legislators to respond to Hallatt’s letter and to “have the backs of workers who are striking to be able to pay for their own healthcare and have security at their workplace.”

Brown highlighted specific safety concerns raised by the predominantly female workforce, including phlebotomists, receptionists, nurses and technicians, who said they have been “accosted in the parking lot like late at night and when they leave early in the morning” and discovered “a vagrant in their break room.”

Workers had requested that non-functioning security cameras be replaced, a “pretty simple request,” Brown said. Instead, Mercyhealth management removed all cameras, citing a false sense of security that they provided.

“It just seemed like there was a certain level of disrespect for essential workers,” Brown said, referring to the employees as “the superglue that keeps this hospital together. “

She also pointed to the disparity between executive salaries and what workers are paid.

Spreitzer and other legislators have joined the picket line on several occasions this week.

“I hope that tomorrow’s negotiating session can reach some resolution,” he said, adding that “I think that the asks of the union are pretty reasonable. In particular it seems like the security issue needs to be addressed and it shouldn’t be that hard to address. It’s a matter of Mercy coming to the table and getting this done; I hope that there’s some breakthrough tomorrow.”

Brown emphasized that striking union members are “not people who don’t want to work,” and said there’s a deeper need to “understand what seems to be going on.”

The legislators concluded their letter by stating their expectation for “a swift end to this strike with an agreement that recognizes the full value of the Mercyhealth workers and their work caring for our community.”